Harmonix dev tackles Rock Band 'euro pricing flamefest'

If you're a gamer in Europe (sorry about that) and have your heart set on purchasing Harmonix's multi-pronged take on the instrument protagonist genre, you'd best stop tossing your coins into the well and start aiming them at your precious porcelain piggybank. In the second attempt at damage control following Rock Band's European pricing announcement, a Harmonix developer deemed the price immobile and immune to the magical power of wishes.

"You may conclude that Rock Band isn't worth the price charged, and that is your prerogative. But it's not magically going to get cheaper because you wish it to be so," said product development manager, Greg LoPiccolo, posting on the official Rock Band forums. He explained that shocking shipping costs (all the peripherals are manufactured in China, natch) contributed to the price hike, as did the UK's longtime scapegoat, VAT. LoPiccolo went on to insist that the company was not "gouging" consumers. "We can only build our franchise if you buy our games."

While it's up to European gamers to accept this as reason or excuse, it does appear to signal the arrival at an impasse. Somebody has to budge -- be it EA finding cheaper distribution methods or consumers convincing themselves that a set of delayed peripherals is worth more than a Wii or the Xbox 360 Arcade. If the game's sales are severely hampered when it releases on May 23rd, however, you can be sure a price drop will "magically" arrive to save the day.

[Via Eurogamer]